Chapter 1037: Ascension Ritual, the Post-Ascension Era

After the banquet, Xia Duo politely declined the invitations for detailed talks from several Councilors and returned to the Tower of Time that same night via the teleportation array at the Arcane Union Headquarters.

Through this New Year Festival night, he had gained a rough understanding of the upper-level ecosystem of Netheril and some of its more core rules of the game, while simultaneously making his own stance known to the outside world.

He could be considered to have officially joined this game called "governance."

This night was extraordinary for many people, but compared to the pillar of light descending from the sky in the Nether Palace of the Old City District in Seventon, Xia Duo's affairs were nothing at all.

In the dead of night in Seventon, it should have been time for rest, especially for spellcasters; regular sleep not only restored energy well but was itself a form of alternative Focus Training.

But tonight, the residual aura caused by the Message spell appeared in almost every place in Seventon where people were present, and a shocking piece of news was spreading wantonly through magic.

……

On the plaza in front of the Nether Palace.

At this moment, it was almost packed with people; if not for the fact that spellcasters deliberately kept their distance from one another, there might have been even more.

There was no need for any busybody to cast a light spell; the pillar of light in the Nether Palace to the north, connecting heaven and earth, had already illuminated the place as if it were broad daylight.

"What happened? Is someone ascending to godhood again?"

Such a pillar of light could not help but remind people of the one that appeared during the Princess's Ascension Ritual at the New Year Festival not long ago, and the topic on the plaza quickly shifted from analyzing what the pillar was to guessing who was ascending to godhood.

And inside the Nether Palace.

In a spacious hall, several clumsy new Priests, under the guidance of a Priest from the Sewendun Dashendian, moved a life-sized statue of the Princess onto a temporarily constructed altar.

Afterward, they began to chant the full text of the "Netheril Expansion and Protection Decree," over and over again, and the atmosphere at the scene gradually became fanatical.

In a corner of the hall, several Great Arcanists, along with Greta and Olong, the two followers of the Princess, were silently observing the progress of the ritual.

"I really didn't expect that there would be so many constraints after becoming a god!" Badijiaer suddenly sighed.

Not long ago, he had just learned from Bailun about Xiya's situation after her Ascension to Godhood; this was the first time the Great Arcanists had understood the reality behind a god from such close proximity.

After Xiya's Ascension to Godhood, she not only faced the threat of the Elf main god but was also unable to easily return to the Main Plane; her situation not only failed to provide much help to Netheril on the Main Plane, but might even have had the opposite effect.

The only benefit was perhaps having a true "god of our own," allowing them to understand some of the reality regarding gods.

Badijiaer highly doubted that if certain people knew that once they became gods they would almost lose the ability to directly intervene in the Main Plane, would they still want to become gods?

"Master Bailun, how much longer do you think Her Highness the Princess will take to descend?"

"Lander, don't ask me this question. Although I have seen Xiya once after her Ascension to Godhood, I had almost no communication with her. You must know that even just looking directly at a god is a form of harm for us mortals, let alone communicating directly."

"Then how do you know about this descent ritual? Also, if Her Highness the Princess can descend so easily, what about the Elf main god? Will he attack us in the Mortal Plane?" Lander continued to press.

A series of questions left Bailun feeling helpless, but fortunately, he knew that Lander was a fairly pure person; the inquiry was just literal, and there were no other hidden thoughts.

"Although direct communication is impossible, it is still possible to convey some simple information."

As he spoke, Bailun took out a Small Wood Carving and summoned from it a strand of Holy Power with unique properties; everyone around had experienced the Princess's Ascension Ritual and knew this was the Princess's Holy Power.

After only a brief moment of Perception, Badijiaer let out a hushed exclamation, "This Holy Power can actually carry information, and such complex and varied information at that."

"If I'm not mistaken, this should be what the Elves call an Oracle." Lander quickly stated his view.

In Netheril, there were only two gods with the most widespread Faith—the Lord of Radiance and the Magic Goddess; both had manifested Divine Miracles other than Holy Power to some extent, but there had never been an Oracle.

It was as if They never cared about how the believers on the ground were doing, and had no intention of expressing anything at all.

But clearly, the gods were not without consciousness; the several Great Arcanists already knew about the Princess being invited to the Death Realm, not to mention the invitation from the Elf main god and the intervention of the Lord of Radiance.

Of course, the Elf main god had passed down Oracles, and now Xiya could too, which gave them some comfort.

"I perceived that Her Highness the Princess said the god's true body is very difficult to enter the Material Plane, but the descent of will is not that difficult." This was Badijiaer's interpretation of the Oracle.

"True body? Isn't Her Highness the Princess's true body right—"

"Huo En!"

Badijiaer immediately interrupted Huo En's words; the Princess did indeed leave behind a body after her Ascension to Godhood, which was currently preserved in the Nether Palace, but this was a secret that the Seven Towers had decided to keep, so how could he just blurt it out so casually!

Huo En also quickly realized his rashness, but still habitually glared at Badijiaer; he had already realized that the "true body" conveyed by the Oracle was not the past human body, but some kind of divine essence.

At this moment, Lander timely changed the subject, "I perceived the detailed steps of the descent ritual; I estimate it will take about another hour to complete the descent."

"It will take as long as an hour? Then the commotion here should be impossible to hide from others; Keman will likely have some thoughts on this side as well."

The speaker was Hadelaien of the Jannick Tower; although he was as tough externally as Badijiaer, he was much more tactful in his dealings compared to the inflexible Badijiaer, often leaving the Elves with nothing to say.

At the mention of Keman at this moment, the other Great Arcanists also frowned; Xiya received an invitation from the Elf main god after her Ascension to Godhood, and this invitation certainly could not be anything good, so what actions would Keman take on the Main Plane?

If one were to say that before the Princess's Ascension to Godhood, although the two countries occasionally had conflicts, under the coordination of Faluo and other high-level Mages, it could actually be considered a relatively intimate honeymoon period.

After the Princess's Ascension to Godhood, would those Elves like Faluo continue to coordinate the conflicts between the two countries, or even push Keman to take the initiative to make concessions in the conflicts?

Anyone with a shred of reason would no longer hold any expectations for them.

Perhaps only after the Princess's Ascension to Godhood did the two countries enter a normal stage of interaction; they might cooperate or communicate, but naturally, they might also compete, conflict, or even go to war.

"Contact Master Kangjienio; let us first go to the Arcane Union to discuss this. As for Keman, as long as we handle our internal problems well, we do not fear a war with them!"

Badijiaer was quite rational this time, and his words were approved by the others.

Afterward, Bailun contacted Kangjienio again, asking him to help contact the remaining Great Arcanists to come to the Arcane Union to discuss the major event together.